Correia appoints new DCM director

Thursday

Nov 30, 2017 at 5:27 PM

Jeffrey Little, a trained civil engineer who recently worked as the director of water maintenance for the water department, began his new job on Monday, confirmed City Administrator Cathy Ann Viveiros.

Jo C. Goode Herald News Staff Reporter @jgoodeHNStaff Reporter

FALL RIVER — Mayor Jasiel Correia II has appointed a new interim director to the Department of Community Maintenance, making it the fifth DCM head since the recently re-elected mayor took office in January 2016.

Jeffrey Little, a trained civil engineer who recently worked as the director of water maintenance for the water department, began his new job on Monday, confirmed City Administrator Cathy Ann Viveiros.

Little's former duties in the water department included supervising water distribution and street work including patching roadways after work has been done on underground pipes, said Viveiros.

"Consequently he has a lot of experience and is well versed and the department has done very well with trench repair," said Viveiros, adding it goes along with the city's move to have more street and sidewalk repair being performed in-house.

By state law he can hold the interim title for 60 days according to state law. Viveiros said after 60 days, the administration will evaluate Little's performance and determine if he will hold the title as director on a permanent basis or extend another 60 day contract.

His annual salary is currently $82,000.

Little first worked for city hall in 2012 when he was hired as the assistant planner and was previously a planner in Swansea in 2006.

DCM has gone through major changes with Correia privatizing city trash and separating the former buildings and grounds division into its own department headed by Christopher Gallagher.

Previous to Little being placed as DCM head, that position was held by John Perry who has returned to his former position which is still titled as director of solid waste.

Director of Human Resources Madeline Coelho said the title will be changed to reflect the position's true duties in the future as the city goes through updating city ordinances.

Viveiros said Perry will be charged overseeing the mayor's new initiative — like streets and sidewalks — and will look to bring more snow removal work back under the responsibility of city workers. The city has relied on approximately 150 vendors to perform the work of snow removal.

"With the new pilot program, John will determine what section of the city will initially fall under the pilot program to determine what additional equipment will be needed. Likely we won't be able to fully implement the program in the up coming season," Viveiros said.

Viveros said the administration has been looking at the possibility of beefing up its snow removal fleet after it compared costs with New Bedford which does its snow plowing in-house.

In 2015, a particularly expensive winter for Fall River, Viveiros said the city paid about $3.4 million to New Bedford's $1 million.

"It's dramatically different," Viveiros said. The city will have to weigh the initial investment to the potential savings.

The revolving DCM director's door began with former DCM head Kenneth Pacheco, who was on the job for a number of years when Correia took office and privatized trash four months later. He was moved to the head of buildings and grounds, but left the municipal side of government when he took a job with the school department.

Correia hired Christopher Okafor, Maynard's head of department of public works, but the job offer was rescinded when The Herald News found he wasn't truthful about his former salary. The job was then given to Rhode Island resident Adriano Ponceano in July 2016. Despite a two-year contract he was dismissed six months later.

Ponceano was replaced with long-time DCM staffer Perry this past January, but Perry was placed back in his former job as second in command at DCM shortly after the Nov. 7 election.

There is another new face at Government Center and in the mayor's sixth-floor office with Correia's campaign manager, Gen Andrade, taking on her new position as chief of staff that brings with it an annual budgeted salary of $78,000.

Andrade is the third of Correia's political supporters to hold the position with former business partner and childhood friend Christopher Parayno resigning less than six months into the then freshman mayor's tenure. He was followed by retired Fall River Police Sgt. Michael Hoar in June 2016 who left the following January who claimed he was leaving due to pension restrictions.

Since his re-election Correia has been silent on his new hires. Andrade announced her appointment on Facebook a week after the election.

Under the terms of the new charter recently approved by voters, Little's appointment will have to be approved by the City Council because he is a department head. Andrade's hiring does not require such a vote.

Coelho said both new positions come with contracts, although they are still being prepared by corporation counsel.

Email Jo C. Goode at jgoode@heraldnews.com

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